Safety attachment for elevator-doors.



No. 836,572. PATENTED NOV. 20, 1906. J. F. GILL & J. J. MEEHAN. SAFETYATTACHMENT FOR ELEVATOR DOORS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 17. 1906.

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QR); in uses UNITED sTArns PATENT JAMES F. GILL AND JOHN J. MEEHAN,-OFNEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

' SAF ETY ATTACHMENT FOR ELEVATOR-DOORS- Specification of LettersPatent.

Patented Nov. 20, 1906.

Application filed September 17, 1906. Serial No. 334,927.

T0 all whom, it may concern:

Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new anduseful'Improvements in Safety Attachments for Elevator-Doors, of whichthe following is a specification.

In the operation of elevators fatal accidents are liable to andfrequently do occur, owing to the car being carelessly or inadvertentlystarted prior to closing the shaft-door, thus resulting in persons whomay attempt to enter the car at the moment of its startingbeing caughtand crushed between the car and shaft. Also accidents in the nature ofpersons falling into the elevator-shaft sometimesfollow as a result offailure through negligence to close the shaft-door.

This invention relates to safety attachments for elevators embodying amovable contact member or controller operable through movements of theshaft-door, and

has for its objects to provide a comparatively simple inexpensive deviceof this character which may be readily installed for use and one wherebythe car-operating -mechanism is so governed as to prevent starting ofthe car until the shaft-door has been closed.

With these and other objects in view the invention comprises the novelfeatures'of construction and combination of parts more fully hereinafterdescribed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a detail view in elevation ofa portion of an elevator equipped with a safety device embodying theinvention. Fig. 2 is a detail s'ectional view,on an enlarged scale, ofthe attachment and attendant parts. Fig. 3 is a section taken on theline 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. 2.Fig. 5 is a .detail perspective view of the flange or abutment.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates an elevator-car arranged fortravel, as usual, in

a shaft, the front wall 2 of which is provided with a doorway normallyclosed by a door 3,

these parts which are conventionally shown -herein being of the usual orany appropriate construction and material, except that the door 3 is inaccordance with the invention provided at. itsrear edge with an inturnedvertical flange or abutment 4.

Attached to the outer faced? the front wall of the car 1 is a pair ofbearing-brackets 5, between which there is pivoted at its elbow on avertical pintle 6 a horizontallymovable contact member or controller 7in.

the form of a substantially V-shaped metal piece presenting a pair ofportions or arms 8 9 and having at its elbow in rear of the pivot 6 aslot or recess 10, in which is fixed a bearing-pin 11, while movablysustained in a bearing 12, by means of a pin 13., is a casing 14,- inwhich is slidably and telescopically disposed a tubular plunger 15,projected through an opening 16in the car-wall and terminating at itsouter end in an extension 17, having a recess 18 to receive pin 11, and

with a pair of inclined walls 19,

adapted ingly-inclined wall 20 at the bottom of recess i 10, there beinghoused in the plunger and its casing 14 a normally expanded spring 21for a purpose which will later appear.

Extended through the arm 8 of the contact member and insulated therefromby an insulating-block 22 is a binding-post 23, on.

the ends of which there are fixed contactpieces 24, adapted to contactwith the outer ends of contacts 25, carried by bindingposts 25, extendedthrough the car-wall and insulated therefrom by insulating-blocks 26,

there being attached to the inner ends of the posts 25, by means of nuts27, the ends of electric conductor-wires 28, by which the current istaken from a suitable sourceand supplied for actuating thecar-operatingmechanisni. (Not shown.)

In'practice when the door 3 is closed the circuit is completed betweenthe generator or other source of electrical energy and thecaroperatingmechanism through the wires 28, owing to the metallicconnection between the contact-pieces 24, carried by the controller 7,and the contacts 25, carried by the'binding posts 25. When the door 3 ismoved to open position, the flange 4 engages the controller-arm 9 andswings the controller to the dotted-line position seen in Fig. 2,thereby throwing the contact-pieces 24 out of engagement with theconta'cts 25 and breaking the circuit, thus to render. the car-operatingmechanism inoperative until the door is again closed, it being notedthat as the door moves to closed position the flange 4 engages the arm 8for returning the icontroller to nor mal position with thecontact-pieces in metallic connection for completing the circuit. Duringmovement of the member 7 in either direction the plunger 15 will moveinto the Having qmbination o 2 O a pivoted member in proximity to saidpair oi contacts and adapted to be swung in a plane transverse, to theplane of the door to make or break the circuit through said conductors,

casing, thereby compressing the spring 21,

which on again expanding acts ,upon the plunger for holdin thecontroller in the I osition to which it 1s set, it being noted t at whenthe plunger is in looking. position it stands off center and ismaintained in such position owing to en agenkent of one of the inclined"walls 19 wit the inclined wall 20. It is. to be particularly observedthat under this construction provision is made for absolutel preventingoperation of the car except-w en the door 3 is in closed position, thusobviating accidents or the possibility of accidents owing to the doorbeing carelessly left open.

thus described our invention, what weclaim a 1 In a safety attachmentfor elevators, the p a car, a door there or, a pair of power-conductorcontacts on the car-wall an abutment on the door for engagement with asaid pivoted member to move the same to make or break position when thedoor is moved with res t to the car, and meansassociated with t epivoted member tending to resist its pivotal movement. I

2. In an elevator safety appliance, the combination with the car anddoor members ofa air of contacts carried by one of sai mem era, a pairof power-conductors con-' nected res ectively to said contacts, acontact mem er pivoted to swing in a plane transverse to the plane ofthe door and adapted to bridge the said pair of contacts for completingthe circuit through said conductors an abutment on the other of saidfirst-name members for enga ement with the pivoted member to move t esame to contacting or non-contacting position when the door is moved toits several positions with respect tothe car, and means for resistingthe movement of the'pivoted member from either of "its extremepositions.

3. In a safety attachment for elevators and in combination with theelevator car and door, a pair of spaced contacts on the car, a pair of;electric conductors connected respectively with said contacts, saidconductors being included in the circuit for supplying motive power'tothe car; a horizontally-movable contact member pivotally sustained onthe 'car' and adapted to bridgethe first-named mova contacts forcompleting the circuit 'through the conductors, said movable contactbeing adapted for movement to position to break said circuit, anabutment on the door for engagement with the movable member to move thesame to contacting or non-contacting position respectively when the-dooris closed or opened, and means for locking the movable contact in eitherof said positions.

4. In a safety attachment for elevators and in combination with theelevator-car and door, a pair of spaced contacts on the car, a pair ofelectric conductors connected respectively with said contacts, saidconductors being included in the circuit for sup lying motive power tothe car, a horizontal y-mbvable contact member pivotally sustained onthe car, and adapted to brid e the first-named contacts for completing t,e circuit through the conductors,;s aid movable contact being ted formovement to position to break adaip sai circuit, an abutment on the doorfor engagement with the movable 'member to move thesame to contacting ornon-contacting 0- sition respectively when the-door is close or opened,and a spring-pressed plunger for looking the movable contact in eitherof said positions. I 5. Ina safety attachment for elevators and incombination with the elevator car and door, a pair of spaced contactmembers on the car, a pair of electric conductors connected respectivelywith said contacts, said conductors llaeing included in an elfictri'ccircuit for an motive owe'r tot ecar, a ivotin pp li lii contactihelnber adapted t d bridg e the contacts for completing thecircuitthrough said conductors, said movable contact be ing adapted formovement to contacting or non-contacting position, an abutment on thedoor for operating the movable contact during mdvement of the door toopen or closed positipn, a casing pivotally sustained On-th'e door, atubular plunger telescopically en- Eaged with the casing, and a'springdisposed

